Assessment of nutrient status of soils under major cropping systems of Chittoor District, Andhra Pradesh
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: Assessment of soil properties and nutrient status is essential for addressing issues of soil health through which one can guide for maintaining sustainable crop productivity.In view of this, soil samples were collected from selected villages under different mandals of Chittoor district to assess macronutrients and micro nutrients status.A total of 225 soil samples (0-15 cm depth) were collected from groundnut-groundnut cropping system, groundnut-Pigeon pea cropping system, paddy-groundnut cropping system, fallow-paddy cropping system, paddy-paddy cropping system, sugarcane-sugarcane cropping system, perennial fodder system, tomato mono cropping system and mango orchards.The results revealed that highest available nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and sulphur was found in the groundnut-Pigeon pea cropping system, paddy-paddy cropping system, perennial fodder system and groundnut-groundnut cropping system, respectively, whereas the lowest nitrogen, potassium and sulphur was recorded in fallow-paddy cropping system.The available phosphorus was found to be low in groundnut-groundnut cropping system.The highest available calcium, magnesium and DTPA extractable Zn, Cu, Fe and Mn was found in perennial fodder system whereas, lowest Ca and Mg were noticed in groundnut-groundnut cropping system, while, lower DTPA extractable micronutrients viz., Zn, Cu, Fe and Mn were observed under fallow paddy cropping system. Keywords:Cropping system, DTPA extractable nutrients and production, soil healthSoil testing is often employed to determine the available nutrient status and nutrient supplying power of soil, which aids in the development of cost-effective nutrient management practices that serves as a foundation for amendments and sound fertilizer recommendations, leading to long-term agriculture production through the adoption of good agronomic management practices by farmers in the study area.Macronutrients (N, P, K, S, Ca and Mg) and micronutrients (Zn, Fe, Cu, Mn) are very important soil elements that controls fertility and productivity of a particular soil.Soil fertility is one of the important factors controlling crop yields and soil characterization in relation to evaluation of soil fertility of an area or a region is an important aspect in the text of sustainable production (Prasad et al., 2020b).In present context, maintaining soil fertility is a key problem in Indian agriculture, especially under the country's rapidly growing population in recent decades.Knowing crop nutrition demand and soil nutrient supplying power determines the amount of fertilizer supple-mentation.Inadequate fertilizer management resulted in the formation of multinutrient deficits in Indian soils.It is difficult to increase agricultural productivity and feed the world's rapidly growing population without maintaining soil fertility.Soil analysis and the investigation of micronutrient levels have been key research topics in recent decades.Soil nutrient status information is required for advising individual farmers on fertiliser scheduling and monitoring changes in soil fertility over a period. MATERIAL AND METHODSChittoor district is a part of Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh.Chittoor district lies extreme South of Andhra Pradesh state approximately between 12°37' to 14°08' North latitude and 78°03' to 79°55' East longitude.The district occupies an area of 15,359 km 2 .The soils in the district constitute red loamy (57%), red sandy (34%) and the remaining 9% is covered by black clay, black loamy, black sandy and red clay.Of the total geographical area of 14.98 lakh ha, nearly 30
Source: The Andhra Agricultural Journal
DOI: 10.61657/aaj.2024.99
Authors: J Haritha, CH Bhargavarami Reddy, P V Geeta Sireesha, S Tirumala Reddy, K V Naga Madhuri
Institution: Acharya N. G. Ranga Agricultural University
Language: English
Subfield: Soil Science
Domain: Life Sciences
SDG: Zero hunger
Open Access status: bronze
OpenAlex ID: W4404872873